To Where You Are
by CG Anna Marie
Summary: A young woman grieves the death of her favorite book character and admittedly love of her life , Sirius Black. But what will she do when she finds the supposedly "deceased" man in her own backyard?
1. Who Can Say For Certain

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Harry Potter and company. Sure would be a nice birthday present though! (Hint, hint.)

**Spoilers:** An excerpt from a page in Harry Potter and The Order of The Phoenix. And the fact that it tells of the death of Sirius.

**Warnings:** None for this chapter. After all this _is_ a PG-13 rated fic. Not much bad stuff will happen in here. Later on might have some swearing and cussing and _maybe_ a snog fest… *shrugs* Who knows? ^_~

**Dedications: **Thank you so much Red (especially you girl! ^_~), Stephen (luv ya lots, babe!), Kneazle (You are my idol!), Elfkin (The absolute best), Katherine (The world's best friend and dancer!) and all those who have been so supportive and have just been **the** best human beings _EVER_! ^_^ I LOVE YOU GUYS! (And girls. ^_~)

Also thank you ever so much to Mrs. J.K. Rowling for creating the wonderful world of Harry Potter. Even if you did create and kill off the greatest convict ever- we still love you.

**Author's Note:** So, as it's been literally YEARS since I've last updated this story, and considering I started writing this back in middle school and I am now in college, I've decided to go back and re-write this. Well, more like seriously edit it, because I still like the plot. There will be definite changes, some major, mostly minor, since I haven't really written much of this for it to make a big difference.

To keep this short and to the point, I hope this fares better this time around! Please be kind in your reviews, being whiney and bitchy over the little things won't stop me from writing. So ha. XD

**Chapter One**

"…_Only one couple were still battling, apparently unaware of the new arrival. Harry saw Sirius duck Bellatrix's jet of red light: He was laughing at her. "Come on, you can do better than that!" he yelled, his voice echoing around the cavernous room._

_The second jet of light hit him squarely on the chest._

_The laughter had not quite died from his face, but his eyes widened in shock._

_Harry released Neville, though he was unaware of doing so. He was jumping down the steps again, pulling out his wand as Dumbledore turned to the dais too._

_It seemed to take Sirius an age to fall. His body curved in a graceful arc as he sank backward through the ragged veil hanging from the arch…_

_And Harry saw the look of mingled fear and surprise on his godfather's wasted, once-handsome face as he fell through the ancient doorway and disappeared behind the veil, which fluttered for a moment as though in a high wind and then fell back into place._

_Harry heard Bellatrix Lestrange's triumphant scream but knew it meant nothing- Sirius had only just fallen through the archway, he would reappear from the other side any second…_

_But Sirius did not reappear…"_

He was floating. Everything was pitch-black but he had the curious sensation that he was floating. He couldn't see anything else but he knew that he was floating; that was for sure. He had no idea where he was or how he got there. He didn't know how to get out of… wherever he was either. And did he mention that he was floating?

Sirius Black berated himself for thinking such flighty-_floaty!_- thoughts. He needed to get back to his godson- Harry was in trouble! He racked his brain (that is if he had one- he wasn't entirely sure he even had a body), trying to remember what had happened to him to get him in this… this place, or whatever this was. Hopefully whatever Sirius found in his memories could perhaps help him escape this place he was in.

It hit him- he had been dueling with his deranged cousin, Bellatrix Lestrange, in the Death Chamber. Suddenly she hit him with a curse and he fell through the archway that had claimed so many lives before him.

The thought stunned him. He was dead? Denial shot through him- it wasn't possible, he was right here! He could still think, he still had his memories… hold on. He couldn't see anything but he could _feel_- didn't that mean he still had a body?

But now that he thought about it, he wasn't aware of anything except his feelings, thoughts, and the weird sensation that he was floating. He couldn't tell anything about his surroundings and the fact that he could tell it was dark everywhere didn't say much. He wasn't aware of his heart beat, he couldn't tell if he was breathing or not- he just… existed. It was as though his soul was separated from his body.

Panic and extreme claustrophobia began to set in. He **can't** be dead! He was needed- Harry needed him! Sirius was frantic- he had to get back. There was no way they could get rid of him **that** easily!

But what could he do? He didn't even know where he **was**, much less how to get back. He thought hard. Sirius had heard much about the Death Chamber and the veiled archway in the middle of the room. Mostly stories of the victims of the "Veil of Death" and the circumstances of their deaths; The Death Chamber was used as a form of execution. Much like how Muggles sentenced criminals to the death penalty, using lethal injection or- _What was it called?- _the electric chair. _'Yes, that was it.'_

No one knew what was beyond the tattered veil and those who did… well, they can't exactly sit down and describe it over a cup of tea. But then again, neither could he- that is to say, describing what it's like beyond the veil. He wasn't even sure he _was_ beyond the archway.

Where in Merlin's beard **was** he?

If it weren't for the fact that he desperately needed to get back and was downright determined to get out of this place, Sirius wouldn't give a care where he was. Aside from the floating sensation, he also felt peaceful. Or he did; now he was putting all his brainpower into thinking of a way out of where he was stuck in. He couldn't think of _anything_. Despair overtook him and grief began to settle in.

'_Harry…' _Sirius thought desperately. He had to get back- he just had to. Or at the very least get out of this dark, solitary confinement in which he was trapped. It didn't matter where he ended up, as long as he was out of this void and be able to be of _some _use. Emotion swelled up inside the very core of his being. _'Please, God, or whoever's listening… let me live… let me see my loved ones…'_

Suddenly, as though someone had heard his plea, a bright light exploded before him, enveloping him with warmth. He had the most uncomfortable sensation of being pulled in all directions. Then it felt as though he were pulled down and backward. It was hard to explain but it certainly felt strange.

Then, as quickly as it happened, it stopped. He felt extremely weak. But he could feel- _really_ feel! He could feel the ground underneath him, the slight breeze fanning his face. He could feel his own heartbeat and could feel air rush into his lungs as he inhaled. He was alive! Joy washed over him in waves.

Sirius tried to get up but his body protested fiercely and excruciating pain shot through him with every small movement. He collapsed back down on his back, agony coursing though him like wildfire. He took deep slow breaths to calm himself- he could feel sweat drip down the side of his face from the amount of effort he exerted. He kept his eyes shut; it felt like it would take a tremendous effort to open them.

Hold on- was it his imagination or was there a hand pushing away the hair from his face? No; clearly there was someone pressing their hand against his forehead and was also making soothing noises as he panted heavily, trying to get his body to relax.

Slowly, he opened his eyes but then squinted as the bright light temporarily blinded him, distorting his vision. Through the slits of his eyes, he was able to see a blurry figure leaning over him. Sirius blinked rapidly and as his eyes quickly adjusted to the light and the person slowly came into focus, he saw that it was actually a young woman.

A very _attractive_ young woman.

She looked young, at the most in her late twenties. With long silky black hair and a small but kind-looking face, she had the look of one of those sweet girl-next-door types. Her almond-shaped eyes were filled with worry and her slender arched eyebrows were pulled together in a concerned frown.

"Where does it hurt?" she asked softly. _'She has an American accent,'_ Sirius realized. Then she was either a tourist in Britain and just happened upon him or he was in an entirely different country. It hurt him too much to keep his eyes open; he closed his eyes and thought about his current situation. _'She has to be a Muggle who lives in the country or else she would've recognized me and turned me in already…'_ But something told him differently. _'Then why? Why doesn't she show any recognition whatsoever?'_

He didn't have enough time to dwell on it because the woman placed a hand on his cheek, urging him to open his eyes. "Sir, can you understand me? Can you hear me?" she asked. Sirius looked back at her and slowly nodded, grimacing at the pain the movement.

The woman's features relaxed in relief. Her warm eyes still contained worry, but now also had confusion and concern.

"Can you speak?" she asked.

Sirius nodded again and replied hoarsely, "Yes." He was captivated by her eyes- they were beautiful, and held a kindness and sincerity he hadn't seen in anyone since Harry...

"That's good." Relief shone in her eyes once more but this time a sheepish yet sweet smile graced her face. Sirius couldn't help but return a small smile. But it disappeared at her next words.

"Then do you mind telling me how you ended up in the middle of my backyard?"

**A/N**: Hoo boy! How's Padfoot going to explain this? And why doesn't this mystery woman know anything about him? Her identity and the bizarre circumstances of Sirius's sudden reappearance will be revealed in the next chapter! XD


	2. Maybe You're Still Here

_**Author's Note:**_

Hello everyone! Wow, it's been a really long time hasn't it? XD I'm so sorry I haven't updated this story in forever, and because it's been such a long time, I've decided to go back and re-write this to make it flow a little better. Being in college tends to make you anal like that, haha! I've decided to change my character's name and her personality a little so she doesn't sound so "Mary-Sue-ish" and make her seem a little more realistic and normal since this story is supposed to be set in modern day XD. But then, who in this world acts normal? Please be nice, it's been a while since I've written something like this!

_**Disclaimer:**_ *exasperated sigh* This isn't really necessary, is it? If Harry Potter was mine, would I _**really**_ be writing fan fiction about it?

_**Warnings: **_None for this chapter.

_**Thanks to: **_**Uchiha Falcon**- Yes, I'm very happy, thanks for reviewing! ^_^; **Tseecka** **Akeunah**- Hey girl! Long time, no see, err, read? Lol! Thank you so much for reading! *hugs*; **animalis g_girl**- lol, thank you!; **katya meimei snape**- yes, it is Sirius, LOL!; **LiLUmBrA**- lol thank you and don't worry, it's not so bad to be a little overly Sirius obsessed, I mean look at me! ^_^ lol; **koko**- lol thank you, I know what you mean, I felt like burning my book when I read his death. ^_^; **austenbronte83**- thank you so much! I'm so sorry you had to wait for so long for this. ^~^ oops! ; **funki-mage**- oh, yes, I agree- I doubt no one in their right mind would just leave Sirius in the middle of their backyard! Lol!; **CiCi**- lol, I know what you mean, this story helps me with the pain of his loss, lol ^_^, there really need to be support groups for this kind of things. ^_^; **BigBlackDogStar**- you know what, I think you like Sirius! ^_^lol, yes, I am so sorry I took WAY too long to write this, but thank you so much for your support! Yeah, I know she's seems so Mary-Sue at first, which drives me insane, but don't worry, she'll get more real and down to earth than you think! ^_^; **MusicChild**- Oh, thank you so much! *You're* sweet for saying that! ^_^; **Aalina**- Thank you! I hardly think this is good work, but that's great of you to think so! ^_^; **greenfairie**- thank you! I hope this will turn out to be as creative as I intend it to be. Watch it be crap, lol!; **dragon the_lonely**- Thank you! I'm sorry I had to keep you waiting! ^_^; **innerfridge-** lol, thank you so much for your support! I'm so sorry I ended up taking three long years for this, but thank you so much for thinking so highly of my story! ^_^

"_Rose Wright_-_ RN, NICU_" read the nametag of the young woman sitting at a small cafeteria table. She shook her head as she watched the T.V. screen above on the opposite wall from her. There was a special debate over the new 5th Harry Potter book that had come out, and the now familiar overzealous religious denominations were crying out against the very popular children's book series. A reverend from some faith of which she missed the name and the editor of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books were disputing over Rowling's real purpose of the Harry Potter stories.

"While Rowling is a noted children's book author who writes very good pieces of work, the fact that she uses the supernatural as the main background of her stories shows that she endorses the use of witchcraft to children and that such devilry is okay!" the reverend argued.

Rose snorted in her coffee. She had heard these arguments several times before, and now instead of shocking her with the absurdity of it, she found it amusing.

"While Mrs. Rowling does use magic as one of the themes in her stories, it isn't the _only_ theme she is trying to convey! She uses Harry Potter as a type of tragic hero overcoming many obstacles and is trying to show little children that no matter how miserable or bleak your future could seem, things could always change for the better. She's trying to tell them that things are never as they seem and get them to realize that extraordinary things could be waiting for them right around the corner! Many other children's book authors do the same thing, she just merely used a different way to show it to them," the editor countered.

Rose inwardly agreed whole-heartedly. While Rose completely understood the reverend's and any other religiously devoted person's outcry, being a Christian herself, even respecting their ability to come forward with their beliefs, she also thought that there was a fine line between being devout and being overzealous, and well, rude. It was just a children's book for goodness sake! Of course, she would be the first to call herself a hypocrite on that part, considering she took the fantasy realm of the Harry Potter books to a completely insane level, even in her own opinion…

On the T.V., the reverend was still arguing for his convictions. "Rowling may be a children's book author, her writing is certainly not for most children! She even has included the element of murder in her latest book!"

A stab of sharp pain hit Rose's chest as she remembered that horrible part. She felt like she couldn't breathe for a few seconds and felt the panic rise in her chest. _Don't you DARE cry, you stupid, stupid, STUPID little girl!_ She told herself as she quickly regained her composure. She quickly got up and left the cafeteria, before she made a real fool of herself. She hurried outside of the hospital's cafeteria to her parking spot where her piece of junk car sat. She climbed in and then rested her head on the steering wheel. Several deep breaths later, she started to laugh. She laughed so hard, the tears finally came.

_Oh good grief,_ she thought, taking deep breaths to calm herself,_ I nearly had a total break down inside of a hospital cafeteria because I was reminded that a FICTIONAL character in a book was killed!_ But it was so much more than just a character. Sirius Black… ever since the very first mention of him in the first book, Rose was intrigued by his character. By the third book, she was fascinated by him, and sympathized in his plight even before his innocence was revealed in the story. At first, she brushed her feelings off as part of her love for the series and as a result of her involuntary single life. Then it became more than that. She wanted to help him, which was pretty stupid of her to think, since it was just a book. But she couldn't help it- she was drawn to him for some reason. The fourth book, where he was forced to live in a place he grew up despising, made her heart break and she longed to take his pain from him. She fell in love with Sirius- she didn't know when, or how, or more importantly, why; she just did.

Rose stopped laughing but the tears still came. She was so miserable and wretched, hurting inside from her loss but also inwardly berating herself for being a mad lovesick loser. Many of her friends and family noticed the dramatic change in her normally cheerful demeanor, but she laughed it off as PMS- she would never admit to them her true pain. It would be like adding insult to injury! She wanted to go see a professional about her distress, but what kind of psychologist would listen to a _registered nurse_ talk about her love of a fictional story-book character and his fictional death and NOT send her to an insane asylum or dope her up on drugs, after telling her boss and making her lose her job?

She wiped away the tears and started the car to drive home. Once she got there, she promised herself, she would take a nice long bath and then a nice long nap- she deserved it. She had been working all week so far, with this past shift for 22 hours straight (with naps in between) and now had the next three days off. _It HAS to be the stress from work_, she thought. _I should ask for a vacation._ For now, she needed sleep. LOTS of sleep.

Rose heaved a huge sigh of relief as she drove up in the drive way of her modest little house. She lived in a quiet, sheltered but safe neighborhood not more than 15 minutes away from the hospital where she worked. She worked her way up the "corporate ladder" of hospital support personnel and earned quite a bit of money but she preferred not to squander it away. She instead saved for the unexpected, learning from experience from patients who couldn't even afford medical insurance.

She climbed out of her car and tiredly walked into her house. A familiar sight greeted her; stylish yet comfortable furniture decorated the house, and all the latest technology was integrated into her lifestyle- 50 inch plasma flat screen TV, the latest high tech computer in the other room, which was furnished with bookcases built into the walls, filled to the brim with all kinds of books. She was prudent with her money, yes, but that didn't mean she lived like a homeless person. She lived within her means, splurging every once in a while, but not too often.

Her dog, Patience, came to greet her in the usual canine way- bounding to the door in her excitement to greet her, tail wagging hard, with her adorable doggy smile. She was too exhausted to really pay much attention to her beloved dog as she usually did. Instead she dropped her bag into the nearest chair, briefly patting Patience's head, navigated around her and wearily headed off to her bedroom, yearning to take off her uniform and jump in to the bath and relax.

However, she was forced to abandon her plan when the phone rang. She groaned and grumbled as she detoured from her way to the bedroom to the phone in the kitchen. She picked up the receiver and no sooner than she mumbled, "Hello?" an irritating, high-pitched voice rang out loudly. "_DARLING ROSA how ARE you?"_ Rose, who had scrunched up her face in pain and wrenched the phone away from her ear, calmly replied, "It's Rose, Caroline, for the millionth time, and I'm sorry but I was just about to go to sleep, I've been working for 22 hours-" "_NONSENSE, darling, you are going to come over to my place and we are going out to a party!"_ Rose sighed exasperatedly and made a face to Patience, who was sitting on the kitchen floor staring at her, giving her what Rose could've sworn was an amused smile.

"I'm really not up to going anywhere Caroline, I'm really tired-" "_NO you're not, you're MOPING again like a kicked puppy because the "love of your life" is dead! Honestly Rosa, grow up!"_ Rose jerked back as though she had been slapped and closed her eyes and grit her teeth as she slowly counted to ten inwardly. She was stupid enough just once to go to one of Caroline's parties and had inadvertently gotten drunk and stupidly spilled the beans about her secret love to Caroline, whose main reason for taking her out was to find out exactly that- her love life, that is to say.

"Seriously, Caroline, I am sorry, but I'm about to pass ou-" "_No you're not, I know you're lying, so I'm coming over and you better be ready to go the hottest club in Washington!" _Rose blinked. "What? Caroline, you can't just-"**click.**

Rose pulled the phone away from her ear and stared at the receiver. She was always amazed at the sheer rudeness of some people, and Caroline beat all of them. She didn't know why Caroline of all people wanted to hang around her- she was just a nurse in a hospital. She had met Caroline through the resident doctor of the maternity ward at one of the charity banquets to which professionals who make loads of money are obligated to going. She had gone to one of them as a favor to the doctor, who was an elderly but sweet man, never married but instead gave his life to his career, for which she greatly admired him. Caroline had just appeared out of nowhere and began berating the poor man Rose accompanied, calling him an old fart who wasted his life on people who were going to die anyways. "_Let them go early, more room and money in the world for me, as I always say,"_ were her exact words. Then she turned around and began insulting Rose, asking her if her life really was that pathetic if she went to a charity banquet with her grandfather! Rose was always proud of her patience, but oh, Caroline tried hers that night.

Even now, she doesn't remember how or why she ended up becoming friends with her, if that's what you could call their relationship. Rose certainly didn't consider her a real friend, but considering Caroline wouldn't leave her alone, she supposed that's what Caroline considered Rose to be.

She put the phone down on its base and walked back to the bedroom, with a more sluggish and weary walk than before.

A little less than an hour later, Rose came out from the bathroom with comfortable pajamas on. She wasn't going to be forced into clubbing with Caroline this time- she was getting tired of this and this time she was putting her foot _down_. The moment Caroline rang that- *_**ding dong***_ _Well, speak of the devil…_

Rose sighed and went to the door, meaning to tell Caroline the moment she opened the door that she was NOT going, not this time, and most likely not ever again. However, Rose didn't have the time to even open her mouth, for the moment she unlocked the door and turned the handle, Caroline shoved through the door and into the house, her mouth running with all the insulting babble she could think of.

"Honestly Rosa-" "Rose." Caroline waved her off, "_Whatever_- you need to stop living like a pathetic hermit, I mean, sure, you don't have much looks and God knows your personality needs work," Caroline failed to see the angry, offended expression on Rose's face and dropped her mink coat on the coffee table as she continued on towards the kitchen, "But that doesn't mean you can't at least _try_ going out and meet new people. Who knows? Maybe there's some poor desperate ogre who's just dying for a woma- uh I mean, _person_ like you." Caroline then went and raided Rose's fridge, leaving Rose fuming in the middle of the dining room. "Good God, woman, _where_ is your beer? Your margarita mixes? _Do you even know the meaning of fun?_" Caroline called out from the kitchen. Rose's lips thinned as she forced out a calm reply, "Unlike you, Caroline, I realize that people can have fun without the use of alcohol." Caroline gave a derogative snort in reply.

Rose had enough. She stomped into the kitchen and went straight up to Caroline, who was eating a piece of cake she had made for a coworker's birthday party the next day. Caroline made a startled sound when she found Rose right behind her and stepped back several steps, saying "God, Rosa, some personal space here," using her fork to gesture an invisible semi-circle in front of her, "I know you're not exactly high class, but I'm sure you learned some manners in that barn of yours!"

Rose gritted her teeth, and snatched the cake away from Caroline, placing the plate on the counter. Swirling around, she stepped closer to Caroline. "GET. OUT." Rose growled. "_I MEAN IT_." She glared at Caroline, who sputtered in shock. "W-what? Rosa, honey, you know I was just kidding ya, huh, you big gal, you? Honestly, you should learn to ease off the testosterone! Sure, you haven't had a man in a while but-" Rose stopped listening and rubber her eyes tiredly, forcing away the tears of frustration and fighting back the rage boiling to the surface. She wished with all her might that Sirius was there to replace the wretched creature of a woman in front of her. She knew it was ridiculous, but it was the only thing holding her to sanity. _Please, God, make her go away…bring Sirius back to me… please…_ Knowing her plea was fruit-less, she opened her eyes again and tuned in to Caroline insulting her mother. "Caroline, I'm _WARNING_ you-"

Suddenly a bright flash of light filled the kitchen, so bright Rose had to cover her eyes again. When she opened her eyes a few seconds later, Caroline was nowhere to be seen. Panicked and incredibly confused, she ran through her house, irrationally thinking Caroline went to some part of her house to destroy something to get back at her for trying to kick her out. Rose could find no destruction and no trace of her. She looked outside and found Caroline's Porsche gone from her driveway. She frowned, knowing that there was no way Caroline could have run out to her car and left in the time it took Rose to close and open her eyes. Besides, she would have heard the monstrous roar of her car as it peeled out of her neighborhood; Caroline had no regard for safe and courteous driving.

Then where did she go? And more importantly, what was that bright light? It seemed as though it came from her backyard, though it didn't seem logical. If it was a glare from a passing car, then it would've come from her front yard, which faced the road. Behind her house was the field belonging to a family farm. She looked out her kitchen window, and to her great surprise, she saw something lying in the middle of her backyard.

Moving to her back door, she saw through the screen that it was actually a _person_. Her nursing instincts put her into gear, and she ran out into the yard, to the person, who turned out to be a man. He seemed malnourished, and in great distress. It looked as though he was having troubles moving, as though it pained him to make the smallest movement.

He was wearing a strange black robe, tattered and raggedy, and was deathly pale. She checked his pulse, noting that though his heart was beating fast, it wasn't too fast to cause alarm and he had no fever. He was taking shallow breaths too quickly, so she tried to calm him down to prevent him from causing more stress than he was already in. He had a haggard, unkempt appearance, but as she swept his hair from his face, she realized that he had a handsome, mature face, though very diminished. She blushed; she'd been alone too long.

The man slowly opened his eyes, blinking rapidly and squinted at the light of the sun. He looked at her and her heart skipped a beat. His haunted yet strong gaze pierced her, leaving her momentarily breathless. Blankly she asked, "Where does it hurt?" He stared at her a few seconds longer and closed his eyes. Rose wondered if he even heard her, let alone understand her. She placed a hand on his face, and he opened his eyes again. "Sir, can you understand me? Can you hear me?" Slowly he nodded, grimacing. Relief spread through her, and embarrassment followed soon after it. This was clearly an injured man, and she wasn't a good nurse if she didn't try to help him, instead of interrogating him.

However, she obviously didn't have enough strength to bring him inside, and calling the ambulance would have to wait until she knew all the details of what happened, and if he had any hidden serious injuries.

"Can you talk?"

He nodded, and then replied hoarsely, "Yes."

"That's good," she replied and then with an apologetic smile, "Then you can tell me how you ended up in my backyard?"

He looked at her with a blank look for several seconds, and then changed to confusion. "Where am I?"

Rose looked at him. "In my backyard," she replied slowly.

"No," he said, "_Where_ am I?"

"Oh!" Rose said, sheepish, "You're in my backyard at 331 Willow Street, in Seattle, Washington." Rose was worried that he might have been a victim of an attack and ended up with severe trauma to his head, causing some memory loss.

"Washington? Where is that?"

Rose was alarmed. "In the United States, North America, the planet Ear-"

"I know where that is!" the man snapped. Rose frowned, "There's no need to be testy." The man looked contrite. "I'm sorry, I just- I thought I was in England, last I checked." Rose stared at the man lying on the grass in her backyard, shocked. _England? He's more than a little off!_

Suddenly, the man tried to get up.

"Whoa! What do you think you're doing?" He gave her a sharp look. "I'm getting up, what does it look like?" She returned his sharp look with an "Oh really?" look of her own, took her pointer finger, pressed it against his forehead, and used it to push him back on to the grass with little effort.

"Looks like you're not going anywhere. Stay here."

He glared at her, which she replied with a haughty look. She got up and began to walk away. Alarmed, he called out, "Where are you going?" She replied without looking back, "I'm going to call for help."

"_What_? No! _COME BACK_!" And at his last words, she felt a strong force violently jerk her back a few feet, landing her on her back. Alarmed and frightened, she screamed and scrambled to her feet, looking for the cause, only seeing the unknown, hapless man on the ground. She shrieked at him "_What just happened_?" He looked around, as though her bushes or her garden would hold some excuse for what just happened, and stammered, "I-I don't know." Rose stalked towards him, "Yes you do! Tell me or I'll stomp your face in!" She stood threateningly over him, as he stared up at her in alarm. "I-I swear! P-p-please!"

His voice was thick with fear, and his face was set with a look of fright, but his eyes betrayed his act. Rose narrowed her eyes, and knelt down to be closer to his face. "You're a horrible actor." His expression turned to utter astonishment, and before he could stammer a reply she cut in, "I don't know what's going on, but you _will_ tell me before this is all over. In the meantime, I'm going to drag you inside, and I'm going to fix you up. Got it?" He swallowed thickly and nodded.

Rose nodded and went back inside, looking back over her shoulder, suspiciously glancing back repeatedly at the invalid behind her. She returned with a tarp that looked to be part of a hammock, and managed to get him to roll on to it. She tied the bottom strings to secure his legs together, and did the same to the top strings to secure his torso.

Since the previous home owner was in a wheel chair, all the stairs were replaced with ramps, which didn't bother Rose any, and in this case, was a great convenience. She whistled for Patience, who came out faster than she'd ever seen her and excitedly sniffed around the man. She managed to make the black half-husky half-German shepherd to calm down and grab onto a knot to help her drag the man she wrapped up into a cocoon up the ramp and onto the porch.

As she was dragging the man, she felt embarrassment creep up on her. There was no need to threaten an obviously injured man. His mysterious appearance in her closed in yard, as well as that strange force, were things he had the knowledge to explain, she knew that, but it could wait. Rose labored as she struggled to heft the man up the ramp, even with Patience working hard alongside her. The man was heavy; _Really_ heavy. When she mentioned this to the man, he answered sarcastically in defense, "Well, I really haven't had the chance to work out, you see?"

Rose pulled the head of the make-shift stretcher up closer to her face and leaned over so she could stare at him upside down. "If you're going to be like that, then you at least owe me the pleasure of your name." The man's face turned impassive. "My name is not important." Rose stopped and looked at him again. "I'll drag you to the dumpster, leave you there, call the cops, and tell them you're a homeless guy trespassing on private property." The man glared at her, and looked away with a hard, pensive look.

She waited a few minutes, and then said, "Well?" He looked back at her, and for a brief moment, she saw a glimmer of insecurity and fear in his eyes before it disappeared behind the inky depths.

It seemed like he took an eternity in that second before he finally replied, "My name is Sirius Black."

There were a few moments of shocked silence, and then Rose dropped him.

A/N: Yay! Let's see how Rose takes the news later! I'm working on the next chapter, but I can't promise how soon I can post it. Hopefully it won't be another 3 years, haha!


	3. I Feel You All Around Me

**Author's Note**: Hey everybody! Thanks for staying with me and supporting me by reading my story! It's been a very long time since I've written anything like this that wasn't due in class by a certain date. So on with the story!

**Disclaimer**: Harry Potter does not belong to me, though I really wish he did because I sure could use the college tuition right about now…

**Warnings**: Some violence, and angry woman rantings. You know; the basics.

**Chapter 3**

Sirius hit the ground hard, the back of his head bouncing on the hardwood of the woman's porch. "OW! _Merlin's beard! _" He complained, and when the stars finally went away from his eyes, he saw the woman was no longer around. He frowned and called out, "HEY! Where are you?" He wriggled in his cloth cage. "Hello? This is cruel and unusual punishment, you know!"

Seemingly out of nowhere, the woman returned…this time with a weapon."OW, _argh_, Merlin's beard! OW, STOP YOU CRAZY OLD BAT!" The woman stopped hitting him with apparently her broom, her face red and panting heavily. She looked like she was about to cry.

"Did Caroline put you up to this? Is this another one of her sick attempts to make me feel even more miserable? How much did she pay you?" She shouted at him, her voice wavering as though she were on the edge of breaking down and sobbing.

Sirius stared horrified at her, extremely confused and in more pain that he was before. Who was this Caroline? _Was she insane?_ Here he was wrapped up like a sausage in a hammock blanket, in pain and lost as to how he ended up alive in her backyard, let alone in the United States, and she was accusing him of conspiracy? This woman was madder than Dumbledore! At least he didn't attack helpless people with brooms!

"I-_AUGH-I_ don't know any bloody Caroline! I'm telling you the truth!"

"LIAR!" She screamed at him, continuing to strike him. "SIRIUS BLACK DOESN'T EXIST! HE DIED IN THE BOOKS! HE'S NOT EVEN REAL!"

Sirius was stunned. _What? How could I not exist? I'm right here!_

"What? No, I DO exist, what in the world are you talking about? And what books?" He stared at her like she was crazy. He felt a tingling cold sensation creep up the base of his spine and settle in his stomach. _What is going on here?_

The woman raised the broom again to attack him and stopped when her dog barked at her. It seemed to jerk her back to her senses. She dropped the broom, throwing away from her as though it were something frightening. She stared at him, dropping her knees with tears falling from her eyes. Relieved she had disposed of her weapon, after a couple minutes of silence, Sirius decided to try his luck.

"Um…are you alright?" The question seemed to startle her. Looking around embarrassed, she wiped her tears away and moved to drag him again. "My god..Yeah..yes, I'm sorry, I…I've had a bad day." Not wanting to upset her again (and possibly allow her another chance to attack him with another cleaning appliance), Sirius kept quiet.

It was the most awkward trek he'd ever taken to someone's living room. He had so many questions to ask her, beginning with her name and what she meant by the books, but he was afraid she'd break down again. She dragged him to her living room, and once untied, she managed to get him to a sitting position so she could pull him onto the couch. Once on the couch, she left him for what seemed like a long time. He didn't want to call for her, lest he cause too much trouble.

She came back with some clothes, a large bowl of water and a wash cloth. "I'm sorry about earlier. I shouldn't have treated you like that." _She's making it sound like she merely lectured me, not like she assaulted me with a bloody broom!_ He thought. "I'm going to clean you up, and then see about getting you some food. Let's put off talking until I make sure you're ok."

Sirius nodded, reddening at the thought that she would be washing him off. _Great Godfrey, PLEASE don't let_ _me embarrass myself_. It had been too long since a woman had touched him.

With her help, he managed to lean forward enough to shrug part of his robe off, leaving him topless. He felt stiff and incredibly sore, and when he heard her sharp intake of breath, he painfully looked down to see his torso covered in bruises. "Well," he remarked, "That explains why I feel like I've been chewed up by a dragon and then trampled upon by a hippogriff!" The woman gave him a sharp look, but said nothing. She soaked the wash cloth in the basin, wrung out the water, and with more delicacy than he expected in a woman who nearly beat him to death just minutes earlier, she gently wiped away the sweat and grime, starting from the head, going down.

He noticed she cleaned all the areas below the neck, purposely avoiding his eyes. Staring hard at her, he watched her watch him, saw how her eyes scanned his wounds and carefully cleaned around them, surprisingly enough causing him little pain. She finished his front side, and watched as she pulled her soft hair into a ponytail, using a tie that was around her wrist.

When she was done, she looked at him and said, "If you can handle leaning forward, you can rest on my while I get your back too." He gulped. Having a beautiful woman hand bathe him was bad enough, being close enough for them to basically be hugging would probably overwhelm him after being alone for so long. _Hold on a second!_ He suddenly thought. _Soft? Beautiful? I must be terribly desperate to find a woman who attacked me attractive._ He watched her come closer, wrap her arms around him, and slowly pull him forward. He would've enjoyed the contact if it didn't come with sharp, terrible pain.

"Uuugh!" He groaned, his face contorting into a grimace. She made soft, cooing sounds, "Shh, I've got you. I'll make this quick." She had moved the bowl closer to his side. Bringing the warm wet cloth around to his back, she began to clean in a circular pattern. He realized, with uncomfortable alacrity, that if someone were to walk in on them, it would look like she was intimately embracing a half-naked man. His discomfort increased, but when he tried to pull away, it only caused more pain. "Augh!" He never knew that there could be such pain from just moving; even the Cruciatus curse didn't pain him this much.

"Okay, I'm done!" She had quickly dried him with another towel, and grasped his shoulders to ease him back against the couch. "I'm going to have to take a look at all of you, and depending on what I find, I might still have to call an ambulance."

He stared at her, his mind spinning. _What she finds? Is she going to strip me naked?_ He couldn't think of what to say first, so he spat out the first thing that came to mind. "An ambu-what? Will that hurt?"

She looked hard at him, searching. _She probably thinks I'm dumber than a box of Pygmy Puffs._ "An ambulance is an emergency service vehicle, and it'll take you to the hospital if I find any serious internal injuries on you." He felt the panic rise up in him again.

"Hold on! You said you wouldn't call in anyone!"

"Not if you have internal bleeding! There's only so much I can do to help you here."

He looked around the room, trying to think of another come-back. "There's no need for that!" He insisted to her, "I'll be fine on my own in a little while. Look, you don't have to help me. I don't even know _your_ name, let alone have done anything to harm you. You can even leave me by your stumper if you want!"

She stared at him. "My _what_? You mean my _dumpster?_"

He rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes, whatever you mugg-err, Americans call it."

Her eyes narrowed at him. "That was a horrible cover-up. I don't know if you hit your head or if you're just plain crazy, but you seem a little old to be role playing a fictional story book character."

It was his turn to stare at her. "Listen, I don't know what book you keep going on about, but at this point I'm in too much pain to keep a row at you-"

"A what?" He rolled his eyes again.

"An argument. Look, I'm sorry but-"

"It's Rose."

He stopped and looked at her. "I beg your pardon?"

She sat on the coffee table across from him, looking from his face to down to her hands. "My name's Rose. I'm sorry, I'm normally not this…crazy, I guess." She smiled half-heartedly. "You showing up unexplained in my fenced in backyard, with no obvious means of entry other than the sky, along with my crazy day…well, let's just say you picked one helluva day to pop up."

He listened intently, hoping to find some more clues as to how he came here. "I'm sorry, Miss Rose, but I don't know how I came to be here. I don't remember much of anything." He swallowed, and realized how dry his mouth was. He didn't know if she bought his lie or not, but considering the confusing mess he landed himself in, it was best to act dumb and see how this played out.

The woman-Rose-nodded, looking away from him, and replied with a wry smile, "Well, that explains your mental state." He kept his mouth shut, but inwardly he thought, _MY mental state? She's a bloomin' head case, she is!_ They both sat in silence for a few more minutes. He watched her as she finally caught his gaze again, and said to him, "Obviously we started on the wrong foot. I don't know who you really are, but I apologize for my behavior. You appeared out of nowhere, and until we can find out where you came from and contact any friends or relatives of yours-" He stifled a snort of disdain at the mention of his foul family. "I guess I'll be your personal nurse for now. You don't seem to have any serious injuries, just a heckuva lot of bruising. I'm going against my better judgment, but since you're technically my patient now, if you still refuse to be taken to the hospital-" He nodded vigorously, grimacing at the pain it caused. "I'll make do with what I can here. Now, I'm going to clean the rest of you, fix up any injuries I can deal with, and then get you dressed with these old clothes I have. Is that okay with you?"

He groaned at the thought of moving, but replied, "Not like I have much of a choice now, do I?" She returned his snide remark with a snort of her own, and continued to clean him. Thank the gods I'm_ wearing briefs_, he thought. When she began to remove his pants, the pain from him shifting again erased any chance of untoward embarrassment on his part, and by the time she managed to get him in his skivvies, he was heaving and covered in sweat. She quickly cleaned him and dried him, but instead of getting the muggle clothes she had set out for him on, she stood up.

"I'll be right back. I'm going to see if I have anything to help with your pain." He said nothing, but gave her a grateful look.

It took her a little while to return, but when she did he started at the site of her wearing gloves and carrying a white box with a red cross on it in one hand, and a needle in the other.

"W-wait just a moment, wh-what are you doing with that?" He asked with his eyes wide. She looked at him and her eyes softened in amusement.

"It's just an injection. It's a low grade pain killer, and I won't be giving much to you in case of a reaction. I work in a hospital, but I sometimes work as a home health care nurse, so I'm allowed to have some medication on me. Don't worry, it's just a tiny prick and then the rest of your pain will go away."

His alarm grew. "Are these…_injections_…safe?"

She smiled, "Yes, I've given these many, many times, to many people. It's perfectly safe."

He didn't put much stock in muggle medicine, but it frightened him to know that it was considered normal to stab another human being and inject them with something foreign, all in the supposed interest of "health care".

"Is that _really_ necessary? Can't…can't you just slap on a cream or something?"

She had the audacity to laugh! She quickly stifled it, but replied smiling, "I understand your concern, but I promise you, I won't cause you any harm."

_Too late for that,_ he thought, but replied, "It's not you I'm worried about, it's the needle!" She continued to smile, and said, "Well, it's either this or you can sit there and be in agony. God help you if you sneeze though…" His eyes widened at the terrible possibility.

"Oh, alright, _fine_! Just give me a moment to prepare." He took a deep breath and held it, squeezed his eyes shut. He ignored her giggling, but couldn't ignore her hands rubbing the back of his neck and shoulders. "Relax, for goodness sake. It'll hurt more if you tense up."

He heeded her advice, but kept his eyes closed, listening to the sounds of her breathing. "Look at me," she coached, and when he opened his eyes, her gaze captured him. Her eyes smiled along with her smooth lips. "Look straight ahead, take a deep breath, and just blow it out as long as you can." He frowned in question, but did as she asked.

He concentrated on the rather large cylindrical candle sitting on the coffee table in front of him. He breathed in deep and blew, imagining in his mind's eye that the air he blew out turned into a gust of wind, strong enough to levitate the candle. To his surprise, the candle began to float just as he imagined! _I don't have my wand, but it looks like my wandless magic still works. _He felt a sense of relief knowing he still had his magic. It floated half a foot above the table, higher until-

"Okay, I'm done! See, that wasn't so ba- _OH MY GOD!_"

The candle crashed back down to the table as he turned to see her staring in horror and shock at the table.

_She saw._

A/N: Whoo hoo! Latest chapter out after years of waiting! Hahaha, well, so far the story is going where I'm liking it to go, but please review and tell me what you think will happen and what you like about it so far! Thanks again!


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